


An Adventure To Surpass Them All

by QueenofCamelot



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, BBC Merlin Gift Exchange 2015, Friendship, Gen, Kid Fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-24
Updated: 2015-12-24
Packaged: 2018-05-08 21:39:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,563
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5514269
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/QueenofCamelot/pseuds/QueenofCamelot
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In the dead of night, Merlin and Will go on a quest to find a dragon.</p>
            </blockquote>





	An Adventure To Surpass Them All

**Author's Note:**

  * For [myrddinwyllt](https://archiveofourown.org/users/myrddinwyllt/gifts).



"And so the dragonlord pulled back his head and roared to the sky, shouting in words of the ancient tongue, knowing he was minutes away from being slain. To his relief, a great dragon, scales a deep red and wings large enough to destroy five village houses in a single swipe emerged from the fog, breathing fire over the dragonlord's enemies, sending the rest of his foes scattering." 

Will's eyes were as wide as saucers. "I wanna be a dragonlord! Can I be one, please?" 

Hunith smiled fondly. "It's a power passed down through generations. Only ten in the whole of Albion possess this power. Your father is a fine farmer, and you too will be one someday. Dragonlords are not needed here or anywhere else in these times.” 

Story-time was Merlin's favourite part of the day. Not only did it feel nice to cuddle up against his mother at the end of a long and arduous day of manual labour, but he got to witness firsthand her amazing affinity with words. Her fascinating and original tales, deserved to be copied onto the pages of a lengthy tome, not whispered in the dark of night to a mere two souls. He particularly liked the stories she told where the hero possessed magic, for it made him wonder at all the wonderful and exciting things he'd likely be able to do once he was of age and permitted to leave his village. 

Something felt different about that night’s story though. His mother kept pausing, an odd look on her face, as if something was troubling her, something she dare not speak aloud. She only tended to do this when the matter was particularly nasty. This was also the first time she’d ever spoken of dragons. She had spoken of witches, dryads, unicorns and faeries more times than he could count, but never of the scaly beasts that used to be commonplace in Essetir. From his mother's description they sounded like magnificent creatures indeed, and the dragonlords noble and courageous. Yet, something bothered him. 

"Do the dragons have to do what the dragonlords say? That doesn't seem very fair," Merlin said, biting his lip. Will nodded along with him. 

His mother hugged him tighter with one arm. "No, you see they share a sacred bond. The dragonlord can hear the dragon's thoughts and vice versa. They're often the best of friends, like you two." 

"Oh, cool!" Merlin and Will said in unison. 

"Where are the dragonlords and their dragons now though?" Will asked. "I’ve never seen any around." 

His mother went silent again. Merlin wondered what she was thinking of. Maybe she really wanted to meet a dragon. Perhaps she was sad she’d never gotten the chance. Merlin hoped he was imagining her wistful mood. He hated it when his mother was sad. She was too good to be sad. 

When she finally spoke again, her words had lost some of their zeal. 

"The dragons hide in caves, or have left the land altogether. The king does not welcome them here, as you two know."

Merlin frowned, crossing his arms, feeling a little hurt. He couldn't understand why the king, a man supposed to be good and noble and true, could hate those like him. He only used his powers to assist with chores, make Will laugh and entertain himself now and again. How could the king not understand that? He wasn't a very good king at all, Merlin decided. 

His mother glanced at the melting candle on his bedside table and then got to her feet slowly. "I think its time for you two to sleep now, otherwise you’ll never get up tomorrow morning." 

She seemed almost distant, still deep in thought, her words almost automatic. Merlin wished she’d just tell them what was wrong. Maybe his magic could fix it. 

"Okay," Will said, sounding unconcerned. 

Merlin gave him a strange look. Will usually begged for another two or three stories before he even tried falling asleep. What was going on that night? 

His mother kissed both their foreheads and then tucked them into their beds, blowing out the candle so the room was pitch black. "I'll see you two in the morning."

"Goodnight," they chimed. 

It was silent for about five minutes and Merlin was just beginning to feel himself drifting away, before he heard the sound of rustling. He really hoped it was Will and not a rat because he knew Will was scared of rats and he really didn't fancy having to get up and find it. A tug at his arm revealed it was Will after all. 

"Merlin," he whispered. "Get up. I want to go and find a dragon."

Merlin rubbed a hand over his face. "Right now?"

Even without being able to see him, Merlin knew his best friend was rolling his eyes. He did that quite often. "Yes, when else can we go? It's the perfect time. We'll be back before your mother even notices we're gone."

"How do you even know there's a dragon around?"

"Your mum said dragons live in caves, right? Well, there's a cave in the Forest of Essetir I found two winters ago and I think one might be in there."

Merlin sat up, heart racing. “But that's outside the border. Why do you think there’s one in there?” 

"When I was there I heard a roar, it was so loud you could probably hear it from miles away. After hearing your mum’s story, I instantly knew what I’d heard was a dragon. And it's not much outside the border, just a bit." 

"What if you're wrong? What if it was something bigger and more dangerous?" Merlin asked, putting borders aside for the minute. 

"Well an adventure's an adventure right? If it's not in there maybe you can magic something up to get the dragon to come to us."

"You know I can only levitate stuff and stop time at the moment," he hissed. Although he was proud of his powers, most of the spells he casted were by accident and could rarely be repeated. 

"Come on, it'll be fun," Will shook his shoulder. Merlin wacked him away with both hands. He wasn't sure what to do. His mother would skin them alive if she found out they'd left Ealdor in the middle of the night, but finding a dragon would be pretty cool, and she didn't have to know and Will was right about the border, it wasn't that far away and technically Ealdor used to be within the border of Camelot ... 

"All right all right," Merlin agreed, pushing his blankets away. "Just be quiet. If my mum hears us, we'll be in a huge amount of trouble." 

Will grinned, grabbing his boots. "I knew you'd come around." 

The two boys then snuck out of the house, with nothing but a sense of brave naivety and unquenchable excitement in their possession. 

...

After about ten minutes of trudging through the forest, Merlin wasn't sure if they'd made the right decision. It was freezing, and the cold air bit at his skin, causing him to shiver constantly despite their quick pace. He yearned for his warm bed, missing it as he never had before. Although the thin blankets that covered it weren’t much, they were warmer than the flimsy material of his tunic. 

"How much further is it?" he asked Will. 

"Not long now, I think,” Will said uncertainly. “Everything looks the same in the dark."

The forest was eerily quiet, the only sound being their boots crushing against the damp leaves and small twigs. He was lucky their boots hadn’t been cleaned that evening otherwise his mother may have suspected something from the mud that caked the bottom of his soles. 

"What are you going to say to the dragon when we find it?" Merlin asked curiously. He himself had no idea. What exactly did one say to a dragon? He supposed, what’s your favourite colour, was not a suitable question to ask. 

"Ask what its like to be a dragon? I don't know, I didn't think that far but I'll think of something on the way."

"Do you think he'll give us a ride back afterwards? It's not going to be fun walking back." Merlin glanced behind him. Every tree looked the same. 

Will shrugged. "Maybe, if he's a friendly dragon." 

"Well if he's not, I'll keep us safe," Merlin promised, looking down at his hands. He’d never let anything hurt his best friend, not when he had the power to stop it, even if he didn’t know how. 

"I thought you said you could only levitate stuff and stop time?" Will said cheekily. 

Merlin rolled his eyes, "Well I'll levitate something to knock him out while we run."

"I hope he's not like that. If we're lucky he won't be." 

"That's if he's even in there," Merlin said, exasperated. 

"If he's not, we'll come up with a new plan." 

"What exactly are you planning to do?”

“Keep looking.”

“We don’t have all night.” 

“I know but what else can we do.”

“We could…” 

"Merlin, there it is!" Will interjected, sounding gleeful. 

Merlin looked up to find himself within metres of the opening of a large, menacing-looking cave, almost completely hidden amongst the trees. "You did it!” 

Will grinned. Told you I could find it." 

He tried to peer inside the cave but it was so dark, he couldn’t see a thing, not even the cave walls. Anything could be in there, spiders, trolls, wilderin…

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Merlin asked, a little hesitant. 

Will looked outraged. "Of course! We didn't come all this way for nothing."

"How are we even going to see in there?" 

Will's face fell and he kicked the dirt. "Good point."

Will looked so disappointed and Merlin felt a rush of anger. It wasn’t fair that they’d come so far only to be foiled by the dark. Merlin couldn’t allow this injustice to occur, wouldn’t see his friend mope about for the rest of the night, so he summoned all his strength and thought as hard as he could of a flame that could guide the way so they could explore the cave. It would be bright, and warm, and safe… 

To his delight everything became alight, leaving the path of the entry of the cave easy to see. 

"Merlin," Will said, astonished. His mouth curved into a wide grin. "So much for not knowing how to do much." 

Merlin shrugged. "I have no idea how I did that but lets go in, in case I can't keep it up."

Will grabbed his hand and they walked into the cave together. The air was moist and the walls were glistening with gods knows what, but Merlin was only focused on meeting the goddamn dragon they’d come for. 

Their faces both fell when they got to the end of the cave, for although it looked massive on the outside, the cave was barely decent in size. All that could be seen were piles upon piles of broken swords and behind that, man-made objects like a wooden bed, torches set upon the walls and a fire pit. It almost looked like a house. Merlin let his own flame die with the shake of his hand. 

"I guess I was wrong," Will said, kicking at one of the swords. It clattered loudly and Merlin jumped. 

“Gods Will, do you have to…” 

"GET OUT!" Merlin and Will both jumped this time for neither of them had spoken. They turned around to see a tall, bearded man, face and arms caked with dirt as if he'd never seen the light of day, glaring at the two of them, nostrils flaring. Will grabbed his hand and Merlin noticed he was trembling, something he rarely ever did. Will was the type to hide his fear behind a mask of indifference, and so he must’ve truly lost all means of control in his apprehension to let it show so easily. Merlin took a step forward, hand outstretched, trying to be brave for the both of them, but even his palm shook. 

"Please don't hurt us…I…I'm warning you,” Merlin said, voice quivering. If he had to use magic to stop the man, he would. His secret was not worth Will’s life. 

The man scowled but lowered his voice. "If you two leave now, I swear I will not hurt either of you. Just get out.” 

As scared as Merlin was, he wasn't about to leave without getting some answers. They hadn’t come all this way to be bullied by a grown man. "What are you doing with all these swords?"

The man took another step forward. Merlin didn't budge, ignoring Will’s insistent tugging at his arm. "None of your business, boy."

"No one keeps hundreds of swords for no reason, tell us, please." 

“I can, and I do,” the man growled. 

“Why can’t you tell us?” Merlin asked. “The reason can’t be that bad.” 

"For gods sake, forget about the swords, what are you two doing here?" 

"We're looking for a dragon," Will piped up. 

The man's eyes narrowed. "Dragon's are not pets to be played with. They could easily end your life in one breath. Would you like to die so painfully?"

"So there is one here?" Merlin asked, jaw dropping. Will's fear seemed to slither away at the prospect of a dragon and he let go of Merlin's arm. Merlin too, was less certain the man was going to hurt them, and more certain he was only a bitter man without any friends. 

The man hesitated. "Magic is banned in this kingdom." 

"That's why all these swords are here. The dragon's hoarding them!" Merlin said excitedly. "I'm right, aren't I." 

"Observant boy," the man muttered. 

"Hang on," Will said, also coming to an epiphany. "That means you're a dragonlord." 

"Don't go slapping your labels on me, boy. To be a dragonlord is as bad as having magic in this kingdom.” 

"Don't worry we won't tell," Will promised, nodding profusely. Merlin didn’t doubt the veracity in Will’s tone, but the man seemed unable to detect it. 

The man glared. "How can I be sure of that? You have no proof anyway, so I have nothing to worry about." 

“We won’t, I swear,” Will said. 

Merlin had an idea, and he knew his mother would scold him for it, but the man seemed scared even though he was trying very hard to hide it. He walked forward, taking a deep breath. The man looked at him suspiciously. 

"Its okay," Merlin said softly, summoning back the flame he had earlier. "I have magic too." The man's eyes widened and he covered Merlin's hands as if he could hear the sound of hoof beats and the clanging of metal. 

"What are you doing?" Will shouted. "Don’t hurt him dragonlord, he didn’t mean it!" 

The man sounded angry. "What in the gods are you doing that for? What if I weren't a dragonlord? What would you do then? Do you want to be executed? Do you think you’re above death?"

Merlin's lips trembled. He had only meant to make the man feel less frightened. "I just..." he trailed off, not sure if the man wanted to hear it. 

The man sighed, rubbing at his beard. "I won't tell the king if you won't tell him about me."

Relief coursed through Merlin’s body and he took a step back. “I won’t.”

"I’m glad we’ve come to an understanding.”

Merlin nodded, glad they had too. 

“Are you magical too by any chance?" the dragonlord asked Will, who was as white as a ghost. 

"Nope, not one drop of magical blood in me," Will said, holding up both hands. 

The man looked relieved. "You should be thankful for that. These are dark times." 

“I know,” Will said, frowning. Merlin wondered if he was remembering the stories his mother had told them of execution in the citadel to frighten them into doing the best they could to keep Merlin’s abilities a secret. 

“Maybe one day they won’t be like that,” Merlin said hopefully, reciting something his mother had also told him often. “Maybe someone better will be king.

The man laughed bitterly. “We all wish for that day but that doesn’t mean it will ever arrive.”

Merlin frowned. How could the man be so empty of hope? What had happened to him to make him this way? “Maybe it will, we don’t know.” 

“I doubt it. Now you two should be on your way,” the dragonlord said gruffly. 

"No, we want to see your dragon first," Will insisted. “Please.” He tacked on at the end. 

The Dragonlord was adamant. “No.” 

“How about this,” Merlin offered. “You show us your dragon and then we’ll go.” 

“No.”

“We’re not going anywhere until we see him,” Will said, tapping his foot. Merlin nodded in agreement. 

The dragonlord sighed. "Kilgarrah is my friend, not my pet." They both stared at him, wide eyed and he shook his head ruefully. "Fine, I will call him and he will take you home. That way, we both get what we want.” 

The two boys nodded eagerly, faces bright with delight. 

The man left the cave to call the dragon, but they could hear him all too well when he shouted the words in a strange language they’d never encountered in their short lives. He returned, stating that it would be a while before the dragon arrived, and told them stories of his adventures as a dragonlord to pass the time. 

He told them of his friends who were executed for being dragonlords, of their dragons. How they were revered as noblemen before the king's ban on magic. He spoke of their magnificence, of their bravery, of battles years past. Battles long forgotten, only to be recalled by memory. For the king burned all the books which recorded these battles, as he had with anything remotely magical. The man's tales fit in perfectly with the story Merlin's mother had told he and Will and Merlin wondered how she'd heard the bits she had. 

They both had so many questions. They inquired about the powers of a dragonlord, how long dragons had been around, the different species of dragons... there was so much to learn, so much to ask. 

It was edging close to morning when the man tiredly said, "The dragon has arrived. It’s time for you two to go home before your parents begin to worry.” 

"I only have my mum to worry about us," Merlin assured him, but frowned at the thought of how angry she was going to be if they didn’t manage to get back on time. 

"Do you live far from here?" the dragonlord asked. 

"Ealdor," Will answered for him. "It's a village not far from here." 

The man stiffened. "You live in Ealdor?" 

"You know of it?" Merlin asked, shocked. No one he’d ever told had ever known of the tiny little village in the corner of Essetir. It was too small to be considered significant to anyone who did not live there. 

The man looked almost sad. "I used to live there once, a long time ago. Tell me, do you know of a woman called Hunith? Does she still live in your village?"

Merlin grinned. "That's my mother, of course she does! How do you know her?" 

Merlin thought the dragonlord would be happy at his words but the man leant forward, eyes wild, all semblance of calm lost. "Your mother? Are you sure?"

"She is the only Hunith of Ealdor."

"She is well then, safe?" he asked, his tone bordering on desperation. “Happy?” 

"Why wouldn't she be?" Merlin asked, frowning. His mother had always led a safe and sheltered life, why would she be in danger? 

"I...it was a long time ago, it doesn't matter. Is your father good to her? Does he treat her well?"

Merlin looked away. He hated talking about his father. "He died before I was born, I never knew him."

The man's eyes were wide now, and to his shock they'd begun to glisten. "You...what... it can’t be!" 

"Its alright," he hastened to soothe the man, patting his shoulder awkwardly. "The gods will let me see him when I go to Avalon. Me and my mum are fine."

"Fine," he repeated, eyes still watery. "And his name, what was your father's name? Did she ever tell you?"

"Balinor," Merlin told him. "His name was Balinor." 

"I...give me a minute,” the man said, voiced choked. "I need to go get something for you to take on your journey home.” 

He walked out of the cave, back hunched. 

Merlin had no idea why the dragonlord was reacting like that. Maybe he missed his family. Maybe Merlin's family reminded him of his. He wished he'd never brought up his mother if that was the case. He wondered how the man knew his mother, but knew he could never ask her because otherwise she'd know he and Will had snuck out and betrayed her trust. They must’ve been friends though, how else had his mother known so much about dragons. 

"We're going to ride a dragon soon!" Will said, face alight with wonder. “This is one of the best days ever.” 

Merlin smiled but it felt wrong. "Yeah!"

The man came back after five minutes when Merlin and Will were starting to debate over whether to go after him or not. From his hand, dangled something small, dark and brown. On closer inspection it was a braided piece of leather, thin but intricate and crafted by hand. 

"The dragon is waiting outside, but first I'd like to give you this." He offered the leather to Merlin, smiling in a tragic sort of way. Merlin accepted it eagerly, examining it closely in the dim light of the torch. Will looked on, lips pursed with slight jealousy. Merlin wondered why the dragonlord had chosen him not Will to give it to. Will had certainly asked more questions than he had. 

"It bears healing qualities," he explained. "It will protect you from life threatening injuries." 

Merlin nodded, grateful. "Thank you." He didn't know how to properly express his thanks. A thank you, didn't feel adequate enough for such a brilliant gift. So he gave him a smile and hoped that conveyed his gratitude. To his shock, the man appeared to smile a bit back. 

"Off you go now then," he said, sounding almost unwilling to let them go. Merlin was hesitant to go home, not wanting to leave the man alone when he looked so sad. But Will had no qualms about leaving and tugged on his arm (Merlin bet he was just eager to meet the dragon) and so Merlin summoned a flame again, an easy feat for him now. When Merlin looked back just as he and Will were about to turn a corner and the dragonlord was still just within sight, he looked just as miserable as before. He would come back to visit him, Merlin decided. No one deserved to be this lonely. 

"Do you think there actually is a dragon or he just said that to get us to leave?" Will asked, sounding devastated at the thought. 

Merlin shrugged and didn't say anything. 

"I am very much here," a voice, loud and confident echoed from outside of the cave. At the sound, they picked up their pace, running the rest of the way to the opening of the cave. Waiting just outside was a large, golden scaly, beast staring down at them with his glowing topaz eyes. Will staggered back a little and Merlin simply stared at it, open mouthed. The dragon was magnificent. 

Hello, fledgling warlock, Merlin heard a voice whisper. But no one had spoken. He looked around to see if anyone else had joined them but it was just he, Will and the Dragon. 

I am Kilgarrah, the voice said again. The dragonlord told you about me, I presume. 

He looked up in amazement. The dragon simply stared at him. How can I hear you, I'm not a dragonlord? 

Magic works in strange ways. It's best not to question it. There are big things in store for you, child of magic. 

Like what?

You must experience your destiny on your own. I cannot tell you what it may or may not contain. 

Then he heard no more as if there had never been a voice in the first place. 

What do you mean? 

But no one answered. Merlin considered himself very confused. 

"Er...dragon...what's it like being a dragon?" Will asked. 

To their astonishment, the dragon let out a deep bellowing laugh.

... 

Merlin was glad he wasn't afraid of heights, for falling off a dragon mid-flight was very different from falling off a horse mid-gallop. The wind in his face was similar but the speed, the thrill of the speed was incomparable. The land was beautiful below them despite being obscured by darkness, and he felt like he was in a dream, a dream he never wanted to wake up from. It was far too soon when the dragon slowly descended to the ground, right outside the Forrest of Essetir, right near Ealdor. 

Will, as much as he'd gone on about what he'd ask the dragon earlier hadn't said much more since they'd taken off. It was like he'd been struck dumb, a very rare occurrence for him. But the light in his gray eyes revealed how much he was enjoying this experience so Merlin wasn't worried. 

"Will we see you again?" Merlin asked after the both of them had thanked the dragon for bringing them back home. 

The dragon nodded. "Certainly. But not for many years."

"How do you..." Merlin began to say but the dragon took off into the sky, looking like something out of a tapestry. Merlin stared after him, still a little shocked by all that had happened. 

Had they really just ridden on the back of a dragon? 

The village kids would really think them crazy now if they shared that story. 

Will broke him out of his stupor by turning to him and grinning. "Well that was certainly an adventure." 

...

His mother cried when she him wearing the bracelet the next day but as much as he begged her to tell him why it affected her so, she wouldn't give in. He expected he’d have to burn it, even with it’s healing qualities, but she urged him to wear it. 

"I don't know where you found this, but you must wear it. It'll keep you safe when your powers cannot," she told him, holding him close. 

He wanted to tell her about the dragonlord, about everything that had happened but he didn’t want to get into trouble. So he kept silent, and wore the bracelet always. 

He tried to visit the dragonlord again a week later, but the cave was empty of swords, of dragons and of dragonlords. He’d never been so disappointed in his life. This time his mother did catch him, and he wasn’t allowed to play with Will for a week. 

It was another ten years before he uncovered the true significance of the thin piece of leather the dragonlord had given him. 

And, it was another two years before he finally found his father again.


End file.
